Archaeologists have finally cracked the code to the famed Ann Francis shipwreck’s brass combination treasure lock. However, the 16th century relic didn’t open after hours of painstaking trial-and-error. Researchers at Cardiff University and Amgueddfa Cymru, the National Museum of Wales, relied on highly detailed CT scanning equipment to peer inside the mechanical device and learn the code without touching the lock itself.
“It’s not every day you get to solve a 400-year-old mystery,” David Williams, a Cardiff University biomechanics engineer, said in a statement.
The lock’s combination was lost on December 28, 1583, when the merchant ship Ann Francis sailed into a powerful storm during a return voyage from Spain. The exact crew number is unclear, but all of them (around 14 sailors) reportedly drowned after veering off-course and wrecking along the coast of southern Wales. Unfortunately, at least one other death is likely directly tied to the Ann Francis. Archival evidence suggests locals later accused a “detestable woman” named Mother Gabley of being an “execrable witch” and casting the foul weather responsible for the maritime tragedy. While Mother Gabley’s fate remains unknown, she would have almost certainly been hanged under the recently passed “Act Against Conjurations, Enchantments and Witchcrafts” if brought to trial.
The Ann Francis remained missing for 415 years, until metal detectorist Peter Hughes rediscovered the wreckage while surveying southern Wales’ Margam Beach in 1998. Hughes and archaeologists subsequently spent more than 20 years scouring the area for the ship’s remains. By 2017, preservationists had documented over 800 gold and silver coins from Germany, Spain, and Portugal along with artifacts like compasses, ship equipment, and cutlery.
Still, the wreck’s most famous remnant is the brass combination lock still in working condition after four centuries buried in sand. It’s possible the lock was used to guard those coins, or potentially other valuables that didn’t survive exposure to the elements. Regardless, the lock has remained close with no hints to its four-letter combination for hundreds of years.

#francis #ship #years

Sacramento Kings (0-5, 15th in the Western Conference) vs. Memphis Grizzlies (5-0, second in the Western Conference)
Memphis, Tennessee; Saturday, 8 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: Memphis will try to extend its five-game win streak with a victory against Sacramento.
Memphis went 25-57 overall, 19-33 in Western Conference action and 14-27 at home during the 2025-26 season. The Grizzlies averaged 27.8 ******* ists per game on 41.3 made field goals last season.
Sacramento finished 22-60 overall and 14-38 in Western Conference play during the 2025-26 season. The Kings gave up 121.0 points per game while committing 19.7 fouls last season.

#western #conference #sacramento

New Zealand vs India 4th T20I prediction, lineups and Eden Park pitch report — who will win? originally appeared on Cricket News. Add Cricket News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
India have already won the series, and New Zealand are running out of bowlers. The fourth T20I at Eden Park on Friday (12.30pm IST) will offer the hosts little comfort.
India chased 199 in 13.2 overs in Wellington, scoring 118 in the first six, the highest powerplay total in men's T20I history. Now they move to a ground where the boundaries are very short.
India have scored at 10.45 an over across 38 T20Is this year, the best of any Full Member. New Zealand have managed 9.37 across 23 innings. Finn Allen apart, their batters do not hit with the same power, and their bowling attack has been stripped back further. Lockie Ferguson is out for the rest of the series, joining Matt Henry and Zak Foulkes on the injury list. Blair Tickner may play.
India have won 22 of their 34 T20Is against New Zealand, losing 11 with one tie, and they have taken eight of the last nine meetings. Their only real choice is how much to rest, with the ODI and Test series still to come. Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy and Shivam Dube have yet to play on this tour, and Mayank Yadav could return. Even so, the top order of Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Sanju Samson and Shreyas Iyer would be hard for any attack to contain.

#zealand #t20i #eden

Timberwolves' Rudy Gobert speaks up on his reluctance to throw it down appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
After Minnesota Timberwolves coach Chris Finch called out Rudy Gobert for his finesse plays during a combined 0-for-13 stretch, the starting center questioned his finishes as well. Amid a two-game skid, the Timberwolves lost Anthony Edwards to a knee injury that will keep him out for at least two months. As Minnesota will look to find success without their All-Star forward, many anticipate Gobert to step up offensively.
Instead, he finished with one point, four rebounds, and one steal in the Timberwolves' 119-114 loss to the Golden State Warriors. In addressing Finch's recent comments about finishing loud in the paint, Gobert agreed with the notion of dunking the ball more often, per Sports Illustrated Andrew Dukowitz.
"Sometimes I tell myself, 'Why didn't I dunk that, too?' I guess it depends," Gobert said. "I guess, most importantly, is to react, to be decisive. To be strong and to be decisive. If I'm going to dunk it, go dunk it. If they foul me and call it, it is how it is. But I gotta be more decisive and more balanced, more poised."
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#rudy #sports #preferred

Yankees predicted to replace Jazz Chisholm with $12M two-time Silver Slugger winner, 4x All-Star originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The New York Yankees have a big offseason ahead after getting swept by their division rival, the Tampa Bay Rays. The Yankees wanted to make a deep postseason run, but ultimately fell short.
All eyes are now on free agents and players who could leave the team. One of those players is Jazz Chisholm Jr., but he would like to stay in New York.
"Chisholm, an All-Star for the second time in 2025, endured a down year at the plate and struggled both offensively and defensively in four appearances in the playoffs. Manager Aaron Boone left Chisholm out of the Yankees' starting lineup for two postseason games, including their season-ending loss on Wednesday. The fans at Yankee Stadium booed Chisholm after he fouled out to first base as a pinch hitter in the bottom of the seventh inning. Nevertheless, Chisholm would rather continue his career with the Yankees than exit in free agency," MLB Trade Rumors wrote.
Early in Chisholm's career, he wasn't always the best player off the field. Yankees legend Derek Jeter even had to get on him when he was an owner of the Miami Marlins.

#chisholm #time #postseason

Sevilla players Juan Iglesias and Kike Salas have criticised the refereeing following their side's 4-1 defeat to Real Madrid, with both questioning why the officials did not intervene over an alleged elbow by Arda Guler on Peque during the first half.
The incident became a major talking point after Real Madrid took control of the contest through goals from Guler and Kylian Mbappe.
The Sevilla players believe the contact on Peque should have been reviewed and potentially resulted in a red card, while Iglesias also highlighted a separate challenge involving Robbie Ure during Mbappe's goal.
Iglesias argued that the incident involving Guler and Peque deserved closer scrutiny, explaining that Sevilla's players had discussed the contact during half-time.
While stopping short of declaring the decision definitively incorrect, the defender made clear that he believed a foul had occurred.

#peque #incident #contact

Daniel Farke wasn't having it that Leeds United were the favourites for this game but there was nothing he could do about the level of expectation around his club going into it.
Last season Leeds drew this fixture 1-1 and then in April claimed their first league win at Old Trafford since 1981. Being truly competitive in the Premier League in both the post-promotion campaign and so far this term allowed supporters not only to dream of Elland Road glory on Sunday afternoon but perhaps even to expect it. Throw in the narrative surrounding the visitors given all that has transpired there of late and at the very least it felt like a big chance.
Yet if reality was to meet expectation, the first half did not make it immediately obvious. A frenetic first few minutes was as anticipated. Ethan Ampadu, leading the team out for the 100th time as captain, was at the heart of an aggressive start. He set the tone by levelling Carlos Baleba to concede one free-kick, then caught Bryan Mbeumo on the ankle to concede another, somehow without seeing yellow.
Neither Bruno Fernandes nor Gabriel Gudmundsson got away with their early transgressions, however. So it was tetchy and fractious, but the play that was punctuated by fouls was largely in the home side's favour. Leeds saw plenty of the ball, some of it in the opposition territory, and though there were dangerous-looking deliveries into the box, only Nico Elvedi's header - saved by Senne Lammens - threatened to open the scoring.
At the other end Mbeumo arrived completely unmarked to head Youri Tielemans' scooped cross past James Trafford's left-hand post. It was a let-off as much as a warning but there was very little between the teams in a first half full of huffing and puffing and largely devoid of magic.

#expectation #post #largely

Gypsy Rose Blanchard has spoken out about the death of her fiancé and the father of her child, Ken Urker. He died Thursday, on his 34th birthday.
Blanchard, 35, confirmed Urker's death in a Thursday night statement to TMZ, saying: "Ken was an amazing father and a man who was deeply loved."
She added that he "will forever be my soulmate and my red string, a connection that time, distance, and even death can never erase."
The Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office confirmed in a statement shared with The Independent that police found Urker dead at his Louisiana home after receiving a call at 6:15 p.m. Thursday. Investigators found him next to "a brown powdery substance," a syringe, handgun and two shot glasses.
"At this time, we are continuing the death investigation," a police spokesperson said. "To this point, we have discovered no signs of foul play."

#thursday #time

Gypsy Rose Blanchard's partner, Ken Urker, has died at the age of 34, a Louisiana sheriff said.
An investigation into his death is underway. Capt. Brennan Matherne of the Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office told CBS News that there are no signs of foul play. TMZ was first to report the news.
According to police records, Gypsy Rose Blanchard's half-brother and his wife, Dylan and Anita Blanchard, went to Urker's home and attempted to gain access to it. After failing to do so, Anita called the Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office and requested a wellness check. She said that Urker was in a "dark place," owned a gun and had threatened suicide, according to the records. Officers were dispatched to the home around 6:15 p.m. on Thursday.
Anita told police that Dylan had knocked at the home's door for an hour with no response. Police said Dylan and another person, Justin Daigle, were eventually able to enter the home through an unlocked bedroom window. Daigle said that he touched Urker's body and realized he was cold and not breathing.
When police arrived on the scene, they found Urker dead in his bed. He "appeared to have been there for an extended period of time," police noted, with the report mentioning his face and arms had turned blue.

#urker #home

Ken Urker, partner of Gypsy Rose Blanchard and father of her daughter Aurora, was found dead at a Louisiana home on Thursday, Oct. 1
The Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office tells PEOPLE that the investigation into his death is ongoing, but they have "found no evidence of foul play" thus far
Blanchard told PEOPLE she believes Urker, who "was not in a good state of mind lately," overdosed
An investigation into the death of Gypsy Rose Blanchard's partner, Ken Urker, remains ongoing.
Urker was found dead at a Louisiana home on Thursday, Oct. 1, after being discovered by a family member, a source confirmed to PEOPLE. The Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office also confirmed Urker's death at 34.

#urker #found #rose #blanchard

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Department of Homeland Security has tapped $20 million to pay for the campaign-style ads glorifying President Donald Trump that have drawn widespread criticism from Republicans and Democrats as a blatant misuse of taxpayer dollars that likely runs afoul of anti-propaganda law.
In a letter Tuesday to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, two top Democratic senators said that the money is being drawn from Trump's so-called "One Big Beautiful Bill" and was supposed to go for U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
"We should not have to remind you that using government funding to create or air political ads like the ones that have been running over the last few days is illegal and a shockingly corrupt misuse of taxpayer dollars," wrote Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, and Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut, the ranking Democrat on the subcommittee that handles Homeland Security funding.
The senators demanded answers within the next 48 hours about "how this president is literally stealing their tax dollars to air campaign ads celebrating himself."
They asked the secretary if the department plans to use additional federal funds to air these ads or create new ones, and if so to share contracting information with Congress. They also asked Mullin if he had spoken to Trump about using the taxpayer funds for the ads.

#democrat

TOKYO (AP) — **** an's air force said one of its long-distance surveillance drones is believed to have crashed into the sea during a flight Tuesday off the country's northwestern coast.
There were no immediate details on the nature of the mission of the uncrewed RQ-4B aircraft, also known as Global Hawk. So far, there was no indication of foul play, but officials said the cause of the presumed crash was under investigation.
The Air Self-Defense Force said the drone had trouble connecting with a communication device about one and a half hours after taking off from the Misawa Air Base. Three minutes later, it disappeared from the radar and was last seen 50 kilometers (31 miles) off the coast of Tottori, the ASDF said.
Later Tuesday, a fighter jet and a **** an Coast Guard patrol ship spotted debris believed to be from the Global Hawk. After examining photos of the debris, the ASDF said the drone is believed to have crashed just after disappearing from the radar.
The cause of the Global Hawk's presumed crash is still under investigation, the ASDF said. There have been no reports of injury or damage related to the crash.

#asdf #coast #crash

As you may have heard, Pete Alonso returned with his new team to Citi Field tonight, and the Mets lost to the Orioles 2-1. Although Jonah Tong pitched admirably, the Mets could not capitalize on their six hits and left nine runners on base.
After Jonah Tong struck out Dylan Beavers to lead off the first inning, Alonso stepped up to thunderous applause, cheers, and chants of his name. He flied out to Carson Benge in right field, but that did not dampen the enthusiasm of the crowd. Tong then retired Gunnar Henderson as well for a 1-2-3 start to his day. In the bottom of the inning, Francisco Lindor walked to lead off, but Juan Soto popped out, and Bo Bichette grounded into a double play for the second and third outs to end the inning.
At the top of the second inning, Jackson Holliday looped a one-out single into right field. He reached second on a passed ball by Francisco Alvarez, which had popped out of Alvarez's glove. It proved costly when Heston Kjerstad drilled a double into right field past Brett Baty. The ball made a weird hop past Baty, and Holliday scored the first run of the game. When the Mets came to bat in the second, they loaded the bases with two outs. Marcus Semien drilled a single down the left-field line, and then A.J. Ewing and Baty walked. Unfortunately, they were all stranded when Alvarez struck out on a foul tip for the third out, and the second inning ended with the score Orioles 1, Mets 0.
Alonso drew a two-out walk in the third inning, but was stranded there when Tong struck out Henderson. At the bottom of the third, Juan Soto smacked a one-out single into right field. Benge sneaked a single past third base, but both runners were again stranded when Jared Young grounded out for the third out. At the top of the fourth inning, Holliday hit a ground ball straight to Semien, but Semien could not get it out of his glove in a timely manner, and Holliday made it to first base safely. He was stranded as well, though. At the bottom of the inning, Ewing drilled a home run into right field. Alvarez smacked a ground ball to third base that Coby Mayo initially fielded but bobbled, allowing Alvarez to reach base safely on an infield hit. However, he was also stranded when Lindor struck out, leaving the score Mets 1, Orioles 1, at the end of the fourth inning.
To lead off the fifth inning, Colton Cowser hit a single that Semien knocked down but couldn't get to first base in time. The next three batters went down in order. Soto walked to lead off the bottom of the fifth and, with two outs, stole second base. Young also drew a walk, but Semien grounded out to end the rally attempt there. Tong came back out for the top of the sixth inning and only needed six pitches to retire the three batters he saw. Josh Walker replaced Brandon Young for the Orioles at the bottom of the sixth, and he also worked a 1-2-3 inning. The score remained 1-1.

#field

CLEVELAND (AP) — Tristan Peters fouled off 12 pitches in an 18-pitch at-bat that keyed Chicago's six-run outburst in the sixth inning and the White Sox beat the Cleveland Guardians 7-3 on Monday night to stay atop the AL Central.
Kyle Teel hit a two-run double and Miguel Vargas connected for a two-run homer following Peters' lengthy plate appearance — the longest in MLB this season, and tied for the third longest since 2000.
The White Sox, who lost 102 games and finished last in 2025, won the opener of the showdown series to push their lead over the Guardians to 1 1/2 games. Chicago has led the division since July 4.
Sean Burke (9-7) didn't allow an earned run in five innings and Chicago's bullpen kept the Guardians in check as the White Sox improved to 7-4 against Cleveland to clinch the season series and tiebreaker.
The Guardians altered their rotation so Gavin Williams (13-8) could start the opener, and the right-hander gave them five solid innings. They needed six.

#cleveland #opener

Manchester City captain Ruben Dias say Phil Foden needed to be "more controlled and composed" when provoked by Bruno Fernandes in Sunday's Manchester derby.
Foden was sent off for violent conduct after kicking out at Fernandes on the floor after being fouled and kicked himself by the Manchester United skipper.
"In the moment I felt it was a bit harsh because my perception was Bruno kicks Phil and then he has a rushed reaction and maybe kicks him back," Dias said.
"I'm not saying Phil didn't do wrong - obviously he needs to be more controlled and composed in that moment.
"I believe he, more than anyone, is frustrated with what happened. That is why it was my biggest joy to come back in and be able to celebrate for him because I know for sure he was feeling responsible for how much more difficult the game became."

#foden #composed #kicks

Real Madrid closed out matchday five of La Liga with a 4-1 win over Rayo Vallecano at the Santiago Bernabéu, with Kylian Mbappé scoring twice against Rayo goalkeeper Emil Audero. The victory moved Real Madrid level on points with Barcelona at the top of the standings.
Mbappé opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 14th minute after Florian Lejeune fouled Alvaro Carreras in the area. Three minutes later, Carreras exchanged passes with Mbappé and finished to double the lead after Lejeune had lost possession under pressure from Vinícius Júnior.
Jude Bellingham made it three before the interval, converting Vinícius Júnior's cut-back after the Brazilian had driven down the left. Real Madrid therefore took a commanding three-goal advantage into half-time, with Mbappé also hitting the post late in the first half.
Rayo Vallecano reduced the deficit in the 51st minute when Sergio Camello scored after a turnover, and the visitors created further openings as they tried to work their way back into the game. Thibaut Courtois made saves during Rayo's improved second-half spell, while Pedro Díaz struck the post.
Mbappé settled the contest in stoppage time, finishing a move created by Arda Güler to make it 4-1 and complete his brace, as detailed in the original match report. The second goal took Mbappé to seven goals in six appearances in all competitions.

#rayo #vallecano

Florida football routed the Campbell Fighting Camels, 52-3, during Week 2, marking the first time since 2021 that the Gators started the season with a pair of wins. However, despite the lopsided score, there is still work to do for the Orange and Blue.
Following the triumph over their FCS opponent, head coach Jon Sumrall spoke to the press about what he saw out on the field inside Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on Saturday. There were things he was proud of — especially Vernell Bown III's performance — but there were also areas that he wants to see the team improve, particularly focusing on personal foul calls and team discipline.
Take a look below at everything Sumrall told the press following Florida's second win of the 2026 campaign.
Appreciate you all being here to cover the game. Happy for our guys to get a win. The goal this week, just like every week, is to be 1-0 at the end of Saturday. We're 1-0 this week, which I'm pleased with.
Some positives. I thought clearly (Vernell Brown III) in the return game came through when it was really clutch with what he did with the ball in his hands on those two punt returns, the third one that we had the penalty on. He did some really nice things in the return game.

#week #vernell #return

The Clasico Regio ended in a 0-0 draw as neither team was able to find that breakout goal. The match was supposed to be one filled with excitement and passion, as is every rivalry game, but this one fell short of that by miles. Now Monterrey will prepare for a difficult game against current champions Cruz Azul while Tigres will face 18th place Juárez.
The beginning of the game seemed to set the tone for the game as Monterrey spent the first 10 minutes pressing high. They were not giving Tigres any room to breathe. This high pressure led to frustrations for the visitors who committed fouls left and right. Joaquim even went as far as committing an unnecessary reckless foul and he was awarded the first yellow card seven minutes into the game. In the 10th minute that high pressure paid off with a dangerous opportunity as the Rayados made their way up the right flank. The ball was crossed into the box but Mauro Lainez was there to kick the ball out of danger. A few minutes later and the home side had another opportunity as Orbelin Pineda beat his mark on the left wing and made his way into the box. Unfortunately he did not shoot as he tried to find the perfect angle and in the process he was dispossessed.
By the 30 minute mark the game had hit a stalemate as both teams attempted to break the other down but the defenses stood strong. Monterrey weren't pressing with the high intensity as they had at the beginning of the game meanwhile Tigres were just trying to make their way forward but were unable to make any real threats. A few minutes later Monterrey had a big chance at goal as Lucas Ocampos received a cross in the box that he sent towards the net but Nahuel was there to make the save. This seemed to awaken Rayados who picked up the intensity but were stopped short by Tigres who started to foul again. Mauro Lainez even picked up a yellow for a foul. The half ended with both teams pushing but unable to find anything.
The second half started like the first with Monterrey putting pressure on Tigres who had trouble moving the ball forward. They then had a dangerous chance in the 55th minute when Juan Brunetta stole the ball at the halfway line and made a run towards his opponents box. Instead of making his way into the box he shot from distance but the ball went over the crossbar. Brunetta seemed to be the only one on Tigres who was attempting to make any breakthroughs while his teammates did little to help him. In the 60th minute the visitors had a big chance as they were awarded a free kick outside of the box due to a Rayados foul. The ball made its way inside the box where Alan Franco headed the ball towards the net but Andrada collected the ball.
It wasn't until the 65th minute that either team made substitutions as Monterrey struck first as Matias Almeyda decided to put fresh legs in at striker. A few minutes later Victor Vucetich also brought in two players with fresh legs looking for a spark his team needed. These changes didn't work for eith

After an epic 11-inning win Friday night against the Phillies, the Braves were hoping to finish them off in the division race. They got a bit of a boost from the Phillies scratching Jesus Luzardo with long-running shoulder soreness.
Tyler Mahle cruised through the first two hitters before Bryce Harper hit a monster homer and took a comical amount of time rounding the bases, clearly hitting back at the controversy from Zach Wheeler's comments about Ronald Acuna's home run celebrations last week. The Phillies had to be feeling good with a 1-0 lead for a couple innings there, until the Braves essentially ended the game with 8 runs in the fourth inning. Ronald Acuna kicked things off with a towering homer (and a normal home run trot).
La Bestia mode activated 🔥#LocalFordDealer | ronaldacunajr24 pic.twitter.com/blKPAhoG0w
The Braves then got a walk, single, single, single, error, wild pitch, walk, double, and single to score another 7 runs. Drake Baldwin provided the double before things got all the way back around to Acuna for the last single, bringing home the last run of the inning.
Mahle continued to cruise after that Harper homer, finishing 7.0 innings of 1-run ball with no walks, even though he only had 7 whiffs and 3 strikeouts. The Braves added another run on in the sixth with a Ronald ABS strikeout-turned-walk, an error on an Olson ground ball, and an Ozzie sac fly. The Phillies got one back with a solo homer from Crawford in the eighth against Brent Suter. The Braves got another 3 runs against the position-player pitcher for Philly in the eighth, as Kiersey singled, Albies doubled, and Harris hit a homer off the right field foul pole. Suter finished off the Phillies in the ninth, as the Braves only needed to throw Mahle and Suter on the night. The Phillies' bullpen is in rough shape on the other side, after the 11-inning game Friday and the blowout bullpen game they suffered today.

#Phillies #home

Atlético Tucumán head coach Julio César Falcioni made harsh accusations against the refereeing after the defeat to River Plate. The experienced manager expressed his outrage over decisions he believes harmed the Tucumán side.
"If Atlético is a problem, they should let us know," Falcioni fired back to the media. The coach claimed there was a foul on Canelo that should have led to a red card for a River player, openly criticizing the lack of judgment from both the main referee and the officials in the VAR booth.
With his trademark blunt tone, the coach ended his remarks without holding back: "It surprises me that some things are judged one way and others differently. Looks like River's band is working again. I can tell right away when I'm getting screwed."
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.

#coach #falcioni #julio #canelo

Arsenal made it four wins from four in the Premier League with a hard-fought 2-0 win over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light. The Black Cats played a gritty, physical game, but the Gunners gave as good as they got, and battled to the win. With a massive ***** ist from David Raya saving a, uh, generously awarded penalty that would have made it 1-0 for the bad guys. Minutes later, Bruno Guimaraes put one top bins. Raya made another brilliant save later in the half. Deep in added time, Bruno put Bukayo Saka in on goal, earning a penalty and second yellow to Reinildo. Penalty converted. Game over.
The Sunderland crowd greeted Bruno with a chorus of boos when he replaced Myles Lewis-Skelly at halftime. They take their rivalry with Newcastle seriously. Unfortunately, it was very much a "keep booing, it only makes me stronger" moment. You could see from the little smile on Bruno's face that he was loving it and using it to fuel him. His "I can't hear you" celebration to the crowd after he'd put one on postage stamp was absolute perfection.
Great call from Mikel Arteta to pull Myles Lewis-Skelly at the break. Everything was off from him — poor touches, cheap fouls — it simply wasn't his night. The manager also had to swap Jurrien Timber for Ben White, who appeared to have tweaked his groin. Because when ***** nal get one right back healthy, the other gets injured. That's how it works. Timber was excellent, by the way.
The ***** nal subs that came on later in the second half, Eze, Merino, and Zubimendi, were mediocre to poor. The depth is tremendous but Mikel Arteta has his work cut out for him to keep everyone sharp so that when they are called into action they don't, say, give the ball away the only two times they get on it like Merino did today.
The Gunners could have and should have been ahead at halftime, but once again, they were profligate with scoring chances. Bukayo Saka was caught in two minds on a leaping volley and only managed glancing contact. Kai Havertz shot over the bar from in close. The German striker also forced a smart save with a brilliant control, turn, and volley move. Saka also flubbed two chances in the second half — he picked the wrong pass on a 4-on-2 break and he shot too close to the keeper. The side could do with a bit better finishing, but if you believe (as I generally do) that finishing ebbs and flows, as long as they keep generated the volume of chances, someone is in for a real hiding.

#second

A year after her American Eagle ad campaign landed her in hot water, Sydney Sweeney is once again courting controversy with a new ad. This time, she's promoting the sports prediction market Novig in a commercial viewers call "disgusting" and "inappropriate."
In the minute-long spot — which Novig posted to YouTube and social media channels earlier this week — the Euphoria star poses nude and uses sports equipment to cover portions of her body as she emphasizes that Novig is a betting platform for sports and nothing else.
"Novig is just sports. So they wanted to show? Just sports," she says in the ad. "No betting on wars or deaths and no politics. Just you, your takes, and sports."
And in Instagram comments, viewers were calling foul.
"By far the worst commercial I have ever seen," one person wrote.

#sports #novig #sweeney

The Braves had 'em all the way. Yep, had 'em all the way. At least, that's what we'll tell ourselves whenever a scintilla of a memory of this game pops into our brains, right? It took 12 innings, a brief blip from Chris Sale, and run-scoring scrambles in the ninth, tenth, and eleventh, another huuuuge hit from Ha-Seong Kim, and finally, a walkoff rope off the bat of Drake Baldwin, but the Braves ultimately prevailed in the opener of the final series against their division rivals.
How do you recap this game? It felt like living a few different lifetimes. I guess we'll just go sequentially, but this is a game that warrants watching the highlights.
After a 45-minute weather-related delay, things got started and Sale pretty much picked up where he left off. The top of the Philadelphia order went down on a flyout and two nasty strikeouts. Aaron Nola retired the first two Braves he faced, but then Matt Olson broke a two-week homerless slide with a slice the other way that juuust managed not to go foul and instead became his 38th longball of the year. A homer from the recently homer-shy Braves offense seemed to be an auspicious sign, but things quickly took a turn for the worse.
After the first two outs of the eighth, Edmundo Sosa caught a Sale slider and yanked it for a single. Sale then issued a rare walk to Bryan De La Cruz of all people, and then hit J.T. Realmuto with the next pitch, loading the bases.
***Derek Hill complaints interlude***

#things

Aston Villa v **** nal, August 2024. Morgan Rogers receives a pass facing his own goal and Declan Rice is immediately on his back, but the Villa midfielder takes the ball with the outside of his right foot and swivels into **** e, leaving Rice behind. The **** e is quickly filled by **** nal's midfield enforcer Thomas Partey, but Rogers knocks it past Partey and races around his back to regather the ball, leaving the Ghanaian splayed on the grass. Their tussle at least buys Rice some time to catch up, but as he lunges in to make the tackle, Rogers takes a clever touch and Rice concedes a clumsy foul.
Arsenal would go on to win but it was an afternoon full of moments like that one in which Rogers tormented his opponents. After the game, Mikel Arteta marvelled at his performance. On Sky Sports, Jamie Redknapp compared Rogers to "Jonah Lomu in his prime", and when you saw the trail of **** nal bodies left on the floor, you understood exactly what he meant.
The Lomu comparison touched on what makes Rogers rare, even unique, in world football, and perhaps helps to explain why Chelsea FC were prepared to spend £117m to sign him this summer. Rogers is a blend of football genres, a walking oxymoron, powerful and graceful, hardy and agile, heavy and light all at once, like some contorted beast with the shoulders of a buffalo and the feet of a squirrel on an errand.
Morgan Rogers has made an impressive start to life at Chelsea (Getty)
There are other robust ball-carriers at the top of the game: Antoine **** yo and Jude Bellingham come to mind; Ryan Gravenberch, Manu Kone and Rice all perform similar functions from deep. But none have Rogers' package of strength and balance, quick feet and rapid acceleration, that creative eye and subtle movement between the lines. In an increasingly **** genized world of coaching and industrialised talent production, Rogers is something of a unicorn forward.

#villa #partey

BERLIN (AP) — ****** an shooting guard Saki Hayashi went off with what looked a broken arm after a foul during the team's playoff against Hungary at the women's FIBA World Cup on Tuesday.
Hayashi scored despite the foul in the air from Agnes Torok but needed immediate medical attention with just over a minute left in the second quarter. She landed awkwardly on her right arm.
She was unable to continue and a somber silence fell upon the arena as she lay still on the court. A blue tarp was provided to give her privacy and fans responded with applause when she was led off.
Hayashi hit nine 3-pointers in ****** an's opening win over Mali on Friday.
Japan trailed Hungary 37-34 at halftime in their playoff to see which team will play a quarterfinal against the United States on Thursday.

#foul

Juventus had won their first two games of the season, but it would be entirely fair to say that they had come close to leaving those matches ruing missed opportunities. Each of them could've been put away long time before they were, and indeed one of the major talking points headed into Sunday's matchup against AC Milan was the fact that the Bianconeri had gotten the results without reaching the level of performance they desired. Milan were in the same boat, winning two straight under new manager Ruben Amorim but not convincing in either. It felt as though the team that managed to perform better would be the likelier to come out of the Allianz on top.
It was ultimately Juve that had the better of a game that was equal parts chaotic and sloppy. But once again they failed to take advantage of their performances. They failed to make the most of the chances they made over the game's first 70 minutes before Milan scored on — stop me if you've heard this one before — their first shot on target of the match. It took until the second minute of stoppage time for Juve to finally even things out, when Federico Gatti powered home a Teun Koopmeiners cross from six yards to earn the Old Lady a 1-1 draw.
The problems for Juventus were the same as we've talked about all season so far. The finishing wasn't nearly good enough, the passing was disjointed and often inaccurate, and overall creativity seemed to be lacking. But in spite of all of that, they can honestly say that they were the better of the two sides and deserved victory — even more so when you consider the fact that Milan's goal really should've been disallowed for a foul in the buildup that was never flagged by VAR. Considering they were missing seven players due to injury, several of whom were extremely important, it's far too early to start abandoning hope of a successful year—provided they make the improvements that their play so far suggest is possible.
Luciano Spalletti was missing Kenan Yildiz, Weston McKennie, Khéphren Thuram, Andrea Cambiaso, Jeff Ekhator, Juan Cabal, and Pape Matar Sarr. His 4-2-3-1 formation gave several players their first starts of the year. Guglielmo Vicario started behind the back four of Pierre Kalulu, Bremer, Jhon Lucumí, and Zeki Celik. Manuel Locatelli and Douglas Luiz started in the middle of the park, while Francisco Conceição joined Nico González and Kerim Alajbegovic behind Randal Kolo Muani in attack.
Amorim missed Matteo Gabbia due to an ankle injury, but returned a few players to the starting lineup who had been eased back into things after long World Cup runs. Mike Maignan started in goal, ahead of a 3-4-2-1 setup that was a slight tweak to Amorim's usual 3-4-3. Former Juve prospect Koni De Winter joined Strahinja Pavolovic and Mario Gila in defense. Big-money signing Diego Moreira got his first start of the season opposite Pervis Estupiñán at the wing-back spots, while Luka Modric and Yunis Musah manned the double pivot. Adrien Rabiot joined Alexis Saele

Delonte West is recognized as one of the NBA's most tragic stories, having fallen on hard times after his career was cut short in 2012. However, during his playing days, the guard was prolific enough to garner attention from one of the league's best.
West famously represented teams such as the Dallas Mavericks, the Seattle SuperSonics, and the Boston Celtics during his seven-year NBA career. Still, his stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers as LeBron James' teammate is discussed more often.
Delonte West's tenure in Cleveland began after being traded to the Cavaliers by the Seattle SuperSonics during the 2007-08 season. While speaking about joining the Cavs on a Kick livestream, West revealed that LeBron James recruited him during a game between Cleveland and Seattle. He shared:
"I was in Seattle, you know, half the year; at the end of the year, they went to Oklahoma. We were playing Cleveland out in Seattle like, you know, the first month of the season, and I was cooking. Then, I remember we were sitting at the foul line, and James, he was like, 'Man, you know I've been, you know, I followed you in college.' You know what I'm saying? He's like, 'You remember that time I came to Philly at the Palestra to watch you play?' And I was like, 'Yeah, I remember.'"
"He was like, 'Man, you want to come play with Cleveland?' I thought he was just doing a veteran trick," West continued. "I thought he was just trying to get me out of my game by, you know, getting familiarity, but he was serious."

#cleveland

In just a few weeks, Pete Crow-Armstrong is expected to join Ernie Banks in a select group: Chicago Cubs players who have won National League Most Valuable Player honors.
Yet PCA has already one-upped Mr. Cub in one category.
Crow-Armstrong became the youngest player in franchise history to hit 40 home runs, reaching the honor on Sunday, Sept. 6 with a low line drive just inside the right field foul pole at loanDepot Park, a game-tying fifth-inning shot off Miami Marlins right-hander Tyler Phillips.
While the Cubs would go on to lose the game 10-3, there's little to stop the Summer of PCA.
He's now second in the major leagues with 40 homers, trailing only Philadelphia DH Kyle Schwarber's 42, and his 8.6 WAR leads all position players. At 24 years, 165 days old, Crow-Armstrong is 49 days younger than Banks was when the Hall of Famer hit his 40th home run in 1955, the first of his eight consecutive All-Star seasons.

#armstrong #Cubs #days

Cleveland Browns offensive tackle Tytus Howard picked up his first career league penalty after drawing a five-figure NFL fine over a preseason infraction. The discipline hit the veteran lineman shortly after arriving via trade and securing a two-year, $45 million extension to anchor Cleveland's front line.
The costly personal foul occurred during early exhibition play as Cleveland works through major offensive line adjustments. Howard faces immediate pressure to stabilize protection while building chemistry alongside four new starting teammates.
Howard was penalized during Cleveland's August 15 preseason game against the Chicago Bears. QB Deshaun Watson had just gained five yards on a scramble when Howard was called for a 15-yard tripping penalty.
"The NFL fined Howard $12,537 for what it deemed unnecessary roughness during the first quarter of the first preseason game. Howard got a 15-yard penalty for tripping on the play," NBC Sports reported. "The $12,537 fine was the biggest fine the NFL has announced for the 2026 preseason, although the league has not yet announced any fines for the third and final week of the preseason."
Jul 29, 2026; Berea, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns offensive tackle Tytus Howard (71) at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

#cleveland #tytus

PORTLAND, Ore.. (AP) — Vincent Janssen scored early in the second half to finish off a hat trick in his first start and fourth MLS appearance, helping the Portland Timbers outlast Minnesota United 5-4 on Saturday night.
Portland (9-10-4) used two goals by Janssen and an own goal by Minnesota United (7-8-8) keeper Drake Callender to jump out to a 3-0 lead in the first 26 minutes.
Janssen scored on a penalty kick in the 11th minute, taking the shot after Cole Bassett was fouled by Minnesota United's Morris Duggan. The 32-year-old scored again in the 26th, six minutes after the own goal.
Minnesota United answered with goals from Marcus Caldeira in the 32nd minute and defender Anthony Markanich in the 38th to cut it to 3-2 by halftime.
Janssen completed his hat trick in the 55th minute, giving the Timbers a 4-3 lead after Caldeira scored for a second time to tie it 3-3 in the 50th.

#janssen #trick